


The Good Kind

by helsinkibaby



Category: Kevin Hill - Fandom
Genre: Be the First Challenge, F/M, Fluff, Het, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-14
Updated: 2016-04-14
Packaged: 2018-06-02 06:58:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6556396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/helsinkibaby/pseuds/helsinkibaby
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kevin wakes up in the middle of the night and realises that he's in trouble.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Good Kind

**Author's Note:**

> For the "Be The First" challenge on LiveJournal (btfchallenge.livejournal.com) where people signed up to write fics for fandoms that had none. 
> 
> I never understood why UPN cancelled this show after one season... it was Taye Diggs with a baby, I mean, do they hate Christmas and kittens too?

There are some moments in life, Kevin knows, when you realise that nothing is ever going to be the same again.

Like walking into his apartment for the first time with a baby in his arms, only to find out that while Toys R’ Us might have set up shop there, there’s nowhere for Sarah to sleep.

Like quitting DDK while on the fast track to partnership, taking a job in a small firm of women.

Like right now, standing in the doorway of Sarah’s room, unable to take his eyes from the tableau inside.

Waking up to find himself alone is never a huge surprise, even if it happens to be in the middle of the night. He knows it’s one of the hazards of sharing the bed with an avowed workaholic, and truth be told, he’s more relieved that Nicolette’s finally got into the habit of sneaking out to the living room when she’s had a brainwave. Once too often, he’s been woken up by the bedside light being snapped on by one hand as the other reaches for a pen and paper, and there was one memorable occasion where he swears she was rewriting her closing summation in her sleep – which wouldn’t be a problem, were it not for the fact that she was rehearsing it in her sleep too.

The problem tonight is that when he woke up alone, he woke up with the knowledge that Nicolette’s not due in court tomorrow, has only depositions and meetings planned. She didn’t even take any work home with her this evening, an event unusual enough to be worthy of note, so he knew she couldn’t be working. His first assumption was that she was in the bathroom, or getting a drink, but when his hand fell on her side of the bed, it was cold, as if she hadn’t been there in quite some while.

Which was what piqued his curiosity, sending him out into the hallway, and when he saw the light on in Sarah’s room, he smiled to himself, guessing what must have happened. He makes his way softly down the hall, just in case Sarah has already fallen back asleep, and when he gets to the doorway, he sees just what he's expecting to see.

Nicolette, sitting in the big green chair near the crib, with Sarah in her arms. The baby’s chubby arms are around Nicolette’s neck, her head resting on Nicolette’s shoulder as one of Nicolette’s hands moves over her back in wide circles. Nicolette’s head is pulled back, so that she can see Sarah, and she smiles as she sees that the baby’s eyes are closed, her breathing deep and even. She presses a kiss to the top of Sarah’s head and stands up, and Kevin would normally make a move to stop her, because he’s told her that Sarah is getting too big for her to carry like that, but she never listens to him.

He would step in now and take Sarah from her, but just like that, revelation hits him like a thunderbolt, and all he can do is lean against the doorframe and stare at her.

Nicolette puts Sarah into the crib, stands there for a second longer, just in case she wakes up, then turns back to look at him. She must have noticed him out of the corner of her eye as she walked to the crib, or something, because she doesn’t look the least bit surprised to see him there, and she keeps her voice down as she walks towards him. “I heard her fussing when I was going for a drink,” she whispers, and it’s only then, when she’s standing in front of him, that she must notice something’s amiss. “Kevin?”

He reaches out to take her hands in his, but he’s still leaning against the doorframe, grateful for its support. He opens his mouth to speak, but all that comes out is a surprised chuckle. It’s enough to make Nicolette smile, but he can see doubt and worry hovering around the edges of her expression, and when she tilts her head, asking, “Kevin, what’s wrong?” he hears those emotions loud and clear in her voice.

“Nothing’s wrong,” he tells her quickly, shaking his head, still amazed himself. “It’s just…”

This, of course, is Nicolette, and she’s not going to wait for him to spit it out. “Just what?”

Taking a deep breath, he shares his discovery with her. “I love you,” he says, and it sounds so simple, so easy, when he knows that it’s anything but. Because he was Kevin Hill, player extraordinaire, and he didn’t want a kid and a relationship, didn’t want the kind of life that he has now. But that’s what he realised, standing here tonight, looking at her, looking at Sarah. He loves her, and he loves what they have together, and he’s never felt this way about anyone before, has never said those words to a woman. This is a huge step for him, and he knows it, and he expects her to be shocked, hopes that she’s going to be pleased.

He doesn’t expect for her to just smile that little Nicolette smile of hers, nod once and say, “Oh… is that it?”

He shakes his head, moves his hands to her shoulders, thinking that maybe she doesn’t get it. “No… I love you.” He emphasises each individual word, doesn’t take his eyes off hers. “And it’s the real deal, the whole nine yards, the kind of thing they write songs about… I love you.”

Her smile grows wider, but she doesn’t show any other reaction. “Kevin,” she says quietly, and she sounds almost amused. “I know.”

Those words surprise him almost as much as the revelation, and he blinks a couple of times as they settle in. “You know?” he repeats. “You know?”

She nods. “I’ve known for a while now,” she tells him blithely.

“I didn’t even know,” he points out. “How could you know?”

Nicolette’s smile is, by now, from ear to ear, and she steps closer to him, sliding her arms around his neck. “You didn’t think I was going to hang around waiting for you to figure it out, did you?” she asks, and if she sounded almost amused a few moments ago, now she definitely is. Kevin’s hands, of their own accord, settle on her hips as she continues, “I mean… for a smart guy, you’re a little slow on the uptake sometimes.”

Her face is scant inches from his, kissing distance, and for once in his life, he doesn’t take the obvious invitation, instead pulls away a little. “You knew?” he asks again, and she laughs, pulling out of the circle of his arms, stepping out into the hallway. Her hand slides into his, squeezing lightly.

“I knew,” she tells him again, taking a step towards the bedroom, tugging at his arm. “Oh, and by the way? I love you too.”

Kevin feels a broad smile spreading across his face as he takes a step to follow her, and the only thing that stops him feeling like an idiot is that Nicolette’s smile is just as big. “Just remember who said it first,” he tells her, and he’s not the least bit surprised when her smile turns wicked, when she lifts one eyebrow and almost stares him down. She wouldn’t be Nicolette if she did anything else.

“Just remember who knew it first,” she orders, taking another step towards the bedroom.

Before Kevin follows her, as is his custom, he throws one last glance to the crib, just in case Sarah has woken up. By all appearances, she hasn’t, because there’s no sound from the crib, but he directs a comment her way anyway. “Ooooh cutie… I’m in so much trouble now…”

He knows it’s true, because he’s been in enough trouble in his life to know.

But this?

This is the good kind.


End file.
